1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to door closing systems and, more particularly, to a self closing system for controlling the closing movement of a sliding door.
2. Introduction
Conventional sliding door systems typically include one or more sliding doors mounted in a track directing movement of the sliding doors between open and closed positions, wherein such door systems may be manually or automatically operated. Manually operated door systems tend to be inefficient and slow as they require a user to move the door between both open and closed positions. In settings requiring quick, efficient door operation such as, for example, in a medical facility, manually operated sliding doors may be impractical.
Automatically operated sliding door systems may address some of the deficiencies of manually operated sliding door systems; however, automatic door systems provide several drawbacks as well. For example, automatic door systems typically provide a fixed timing and range of motion of the sliding doors. The fixed timing of the doors may be undesirable as operation of the door may be premature, too slow, or otherwise disruptive. The fixed range of motion of the sliding door may be undesirable if a user wishes to allow for a specific amount of clearance as they pass through the open doorway. Additionally, manual and automatic sliding door systems tend to experience other disadvantages such as, for example, slamming of the door against the door jamb and oftentimes require a large mounting space. As such, conventional sliding door systems may not be satisfactory for all conditions of operation.